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Germany · Schleswig-Holstein

Kiel: how to get there and around

Airports, stations, ports, where the hotels are and what the numbers say, from public data rather than a brochure.

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Kiel is a city of 252,668 people in Germany (Schleswig-Holstein), 7 m (23 ft) above sea level. The nearest large airport is Hamburg Helmut Schmidt Airport (HAM), 77 km (48 mi) from the centre.

Key facts

Population252,668
Elevation7 m (23 ft)
Time zoneEurope/Berlin (UTC+2 now)
CurrencyEuro (EUR)
Dialling code+49
Driving sideRight
Plug typesEuro, Schuko
Postal codes17 codes, 24103 to 24159
Coordinates54.321, 10.135
Kiel

Open Kiel in Google Maps

Daylight in Kiel runs from about 7 h 23 min a day in late December to 17 h 18 min in late June (computed for 54.32° latitude), which matters more than the forecast when a day is built around one flight or one crossing.

Getting there

Kiel is served by 3 airports with scheduled flights within 100 km. The closest large one is Hamburg Helmut Schmidt Airport (HAM), 77 km (48 mi) from the centre, whose 12,028-ft runway is long enough for long-haul wide-body aircraft. The alternatives are Lübeck Blankensee Airport (LBC, 69 km), Sønderborg Airport (SGD, 75 km).

Flights to Kiel: every airport, routes and times

Buses to Kiel · Driving and car hire

Nearby cities, and how to get between them

Common questions

Which airport serves Kiel?

Hamburg Helmut Schmidt Airport (HAM), 77 km (48 mi) from the centre, plus 2 other airports with scheduled flights within 100 km.

How big is Kiel?

About 252,668 people live in Kiel (GeoNames).

What time zone is Kiel in?

Europe/Berlin, currently UTC+2.

What currency is used in Kiel?

The Euro (EUR). Traffic drives on the right.

Which cities are near Kiel?

Berlin (295 km), Hamburg (86 km), Copenhagen (216 km), Gothenburg (393 km), Essen (381 km).

Where these facts come from

  • GeoNames (CC BY 4.0): population, elevation, time zone, postal codes
  • Wikidata (CC0): area, sister cities, visitor numbers, heritage listings, stations and ports
  • OurAirports (public domain): airports, runways
  • Natural Earth (public domain): map outlines

Data compiled 13 September 2026. Hotel figures are from our booking partner’s catalogue on that date. Journey times on this page are estimates from distance, not timetables; check the operator before you rely on one.